UDOT officials and representatives from the DWR, Division of Wildlife Resources, gathered Thursday morning to celebrate the official opening of the first Wildlife Bridge in the state. The irony of the event is that it’s really a closing because the message was clear from all those at the event. Now that it’s open, people and pets need to stay away. Carolyn Murray was there and has this report:

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In two years, the stretch on I-80 from Lambs Canyon to the Jeremy Ranch Exit has produced over a hundred wildlife caused crashes. DWR representative, Scott Root said that number is low because many times animals are hit, and they run off only to die elsewhere. But he said the Park City residents who initiated the project should be acknowledged for the benefits the wildlife bridge will provide. It will keep drivers safer as well as the wildlife that migrate across I-80 at the top of Parley’s Canyon.

“Kudos to the residents of Park City. We know it will probably be used and hopefully, quite well in the future. And, as we were there, I saw two different moose near the structure. One was only about a hundred yards away. And, there were deer tracks on the other side, so I feel very confident it will be used. And, it will be very helpful for big game migration. They can get to their summer range and their winter range."

UDOT spokesperson, John Gleason said mixing the severe weather, the high traffic speeds and the large game animals makes for dangerous driving conditions.

"But the real purpose here is to keep drivers safe going through Parley’s Canyon. You mix those high speeds with a lot of large animals, like moose, deer, elk and the results can be catastrophic. So, a bridge like this, a project like this is really going to address some of those concerns. You know, this is probably the most talked about UDOT project of the year. And, rightfully so. It’s a unique project. It’s exciting to be able to do something like this not nly to protect the wildlife in the area but also to save the lives of people that travel here in the canyon. And, that’s the real objective here, to improve safety in Parley’s Canyon.”

UDOT Natural Resources Manager Matt Howard said he will monitor animal traffic on the bridge with motion sensitive cameras over the next five years. He said it’s going to take several years before they can measure the success of the bridge.

“The data shows that that’s about how long it takes for animals to learn about a new crossing and what’s really important is that they start training their young to use it. So, once we have that second and third generation of animals using it, then we can say what we are really looking at. But, as soon as we start getting animals crossing, I am going to put together highlight reels of the crossing especially when we get species that might be exciting. We expect to cross a lot of mule deer but if we get anything like a moose or anything else, I would definitely want to make sure people know that we’ve crossed it.”

The bridge is the first above surface crossing and it’s landscaped to look like natural habitat. Howard said there are thousands of safe wildlife crossings happening all over the state that drivers don’t see.

“We have some extremely successful underpasses all over the state that are thousands of animals a year. But, this is definitely the first over pass so it’s a lot more charismatic and people will notice it. But, people are driving over successful wildlife crossings all over the state and people don’t even know it’s there.”

According to UDOT’s spokesperson, they are not considering other bridges or additional wildlife fencing right now. Gleason said the $5.5 million-dollar bridge never would have been funded without the newly built noise wall or the new climbing lane projects recently completed between the Jeremy exit and Parley’s Summit.

“The partnerships with the Division of Wildlife, the community of Summit County, but also the fact that we had the existing project happening up here, the climbing lane project. So, this is part of that climbing lane project. They’re all tied in together. This wouldn’t be a stand-alone project. There’s really a lot of work happening in Parley’s Canyon and it’s all focused on keeping traffic moving and improving the safety of the canyon.”

In 2015, the citizens group, Save People Save Wildlife began the work of petitioning UDOT to build the wildlife ridge. Spokesperson, Sharon Cantwell said they’re delighted with what the crossing, but they’ re not done. She’ll be on KPCW later this month to talk about efforts to continue fencing along I-80 from Jeremy Ranch to Kimball Junction.

A reminder that wildlife won’t use the bridge if there is the scent of dogs or humans near it.

Road construction projects on I-80 are on schedule and by the time winter arrives, UDOT says all of it will be finished. Carolyn Murray has this:

UDOT spokesperson, John Gleason says the wildlife bridge spanning I-80 at the top of Parley’s Canyon is going to be good for people and animals. Large game is frequently hit on the highway between Lambs Canyon and Kimball Junction. UDOT says car/animal collisions in the past few years have killed 122 mule deer, 13 moose, four elk, three mountain lions and a black bear.

A black bear was hit Thursday night at 11pm on I 80 west bound near mile post 138 between Parleys Summit and Lambs Canyon. The accident involved multiple cars and one man was taken to the hospital with facial cuts and a possible dislocated shoulder. Carolyn Murray spoke with the Utah Highway Patrol Trooper responding to the accident.

The Save People, Save Wildlife group worked with the Utah Department of Transportation in the past couple of years to put up wildlife fencing to make the I-80 freeway near Jeremy Ranch a safer place for motorists and animals. Construction of a new climbing lane is causing concerns for the neighborhoods nearby. Carolyn Murray has these updates.

Representatives of the Utah Department of Transportation came to the Summit County Council Wednesday to address concerns by citizens. UDOT responded point by point, to criticism that they haven't followed their own process to plan a noise wall between Interstate 80 and Jeremy Ranch.

UDOT official Bryan Adams say in the end, they feel "pretty extremely comfortable" that they have followed the criteria set by the state and the federal government. Rick Brough has more:

The group Citizens Against the Wall is asking Utah Gov. Gary Herbert to stop the noise wall project planned along the west side of Interstate Highway 80 until the criteria that the Utah Department of Transportation used in its decision-making process to build the wall can be investigated.

UDOT has several upcoming projects scheduled for sections of I-80 in Summit County. Starting August 1st and going through mid-October, UDOT will be working on the Tollgate Bridge. UDOT Travel Information Manager Lisa Miller explains the project.

UDOT has completed noise balloting for the I-80 Westbound Truck Lane and Wildlife Improvements project. With 93 % voting in favor of a noise barrier, the results surpass UDOT’s noise abatement requirements. The variable height, 7 to 17 foot high barrier will be built as part of a larger freeway project scheduled for 2018.The announcement was sent to KPCW late in the day last Friday, right before the long holiday weekend. Carolyn Murray has this:

The leaves are changing colors on the mountain side which means Fall is on the doorstep. It also means moose are in their mating season, which is known as the rut. KPCW has received reports of dangerous human interactions with moose near one of Park City’s popular hiking trails. Carolyn Murray has this:

The summer angling season is in swing in the Wasatch Back and the Uintah Basin. Strawberry Reservoir is located in Wasatch County and DWR Biologists will begin to monitor fish populations such as the Utah Cutthroat, Rainbow Trout and Kokanee Salmon. Biologists report huge Cutthroat being captured in the spawning traps and this requires changes in managing these native fish populations. Carolyn Murray has this:

May and June is the calving season here in the Wasatch Back. As many of us head for the outdoors, there are things we can do to protect the newborns in the wild. Wildlife Resource experts remind us of campsite practices to keep our own families safe as well. Carolyn Murray has this:

Mountain lions were sighted in Timberlake last week and over the weekend in Park City. The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources didn’t get confirmation of the sighting and so at this point – nothing has been done. KPCW’s Melissa Allison has more.

Utah's first overpass built solely for wildlife crossings is set to open today.

The overpass which spans six lanes of interstate was built this summer to improve safety on I-80 and help reduce the number wildlife and vehicle collisions.

The Utah Department of Transportation coordinated with the state Division of Wildlife Resources before building the project to look at wildlife migration patterns and habitat as well as the width requirements of the overpass.